Metered Access

Crain's Detroit Business is a metered site. Print and digital subscribers have unlimited access to stories, but registered users are limited to eight stories every 30 days. After viewing three metered stories, you'll be asked to register or log in. After eight more stories in 30 days, you'll be asked to subscribe.

M-­1 rail public hearing set for Jan. 22

A rendering of the M-1 Rail streetcar project on Woodward Avenue in Detroit.

The city of Detroit and the Michigan Department of Transportation will host a joint public hearing on Jan. 22 to discuss their operating licenses for the $137 million streetcar line planned for Woodward Avenue.

The nonprofit M-1 Rail, the public-private consortium of investors organizing the project, must be licensed by the city's Department of Public Works and MDOT to operate the 3.3-mile train system in the public roadway.

The hearing is scheduled for 5-7 p.m. at the Detroit Public Library Main Branch. Formal presentations are scheduled for 6 p.m., followed by public comment.

The proposed operating license agreements, which include the licenses and general terms and conditions for the M-1 Rail, are available for review and comment through Jan. 24 at:

• M-1Rail.com• MDOT Detroit Transportation Service Center • City of Detroit Department of Public Works • Detroit Public Library Main Branch and select branches• Southeast Michigan Council of Governments offices

• City of Highland Park offices

They will also be available at the Detroit Department of Transportation headquarters and two more library branches starting Monday. More details can be found at m-1rail.com.

The M-1 Rail streetcar project involves the construction of a mostly curbside-running, fixed streetcar circulation system, commingled with traffic, along a 3.3-mile grade-level loop on Woodward Avenue. It will have 11 stops between Grand Boulevard and Congress Street and will run in the median at its north and south ends.

Last month, work began on Woodward to relocate underground utilities to prepare for M-1 Rail's construction, which is expected to start after the spring thaw, M-1 CEO Matt Cullen has said.